Setting the scene for Canada

Though this weekend's grand prix is in Canada, it was Bahrain that dominated paddock talk during the build-up in Montreal. Edd Straw recounts an extraordinary day of twists and turns

It was like the old days as politics loomed as large over the paddock as the storm clouds that have flared up and doused Montreal with rain over the last couple of days. A few minutes before this morning's driver press conference, which starred Monaco Grand Prix bad boy Lewis Hamilton, the FIA released its response to FOTA's written request not to reshuffle this year's calendar to accommodate the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Included on its website alongside FIA president Jean Todt's reply was the original letter, in which the teams said that "we support the idea of racing in Bahrain... once the security conditions have been fully re-established." FOTA cited logistical problems as the sole reason for its objections, although privately it's very clear that there are some strong objections to F1 racing in Bahrain for other reasons that anyone who has been paying attention to news reports for the past three or four months won't need to be reminded of.